Xiaoyao Xiaojunhou

Chapter 22 Tea Farmer
The battle situation did not develop as Zhu Xiuyuan expected -

The two sides fought endlessly, leaving a lot of wounded.

Even the weapons in the hands of the two sides did not touch...

"You...who are you?"

The bearded man held the wooden handle of the shovel and rubbed it from time to time. It was as hot as a red-hot iron rod and he couldn't hold it.

"Tell me, who are you!"

A few bold tea farmers, holding "weapons" such as poles and hoes, were there to ask questions.

However, their hands and feet were trembling, and they were obviously very scared, as if they would drop their "weapons" and run away at any time.

They are opposite.

The more than ten state soldiers, under the command of the small squad leader, uniformly raised their swords.

I saw a vast expanse of knives...

The head of the class smiled sarcastically.

Just now, he just shouted a few chants and performed a few drills.

The broadsword was manipulated like an arm by the state soldiers. Their movements were uniform and powerful, and the snow was everywhere.

The tea farmers on the opposite side have never seen such a battle.

In the past, although I had beaten the Yamen Master, I had never seen such a terrifying momentum.

Shocked, the tea farmers became paralyzed, like eggplants beaten by frost, unable to hold their "weapons".

They actually don't know that these ten people are Yamen state soldiers, they just put on the clothes of Yamen officials...

Later, Zhu Xiuyuan breathed a sigh of relief.

These tea farmers looked like bandits, which frightened him.

Dong Shuzhen and Xia Wu looked a little disappointed.

Qiu Wen, the little maid, has been hiding behind Zhu Xiuyuan.

Shrinking her head and pretending to be a quail, she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the "battle" did not start.

"Stop, stop!"

At this time, the tea garden steward immediately rushed forward, passed the small team leader, and rushed into the buffer zone where the two sides were confronting each other.

The tea farmers were frightened and couldn't help but take half a step back.

"Big Beard, are you blind? You can't even recognize me!?" The tea garden steward clapped his hands and roared in a very dissatisfied tone.

"You are?" The bearded man was dumbfounded.

"Well, you bearded man, I am the manager of Dong's Tea Garden. I have helped you before. Have you forgotten?"

The tea garden steward jumped up again, with a hint of anger in his roar.

"Ah...it turns out to be the steward!"

The bearded man yelled, his hands softened, and the shovel fell to the ground with a "clang" sound.

We can finally get rid of this "hot" thing... The other tea farmers also put down their "weapons" and shouted: "Benefactor!"

Zhu Xiu saw that the situation was under control and stepped forward. He first told the squad leader to put away his weapons, and then asked: "How do they call you 'Benefactor'?"

"Yes, why do they call you benefactor?"

Dong Shuzhen's head popped out from behind her husband and followed another formation.

It looks cute and very cute.

"Second young lady, uncle, this matter is a long story... Why don't we wait until we have time to explain it in detail?" The tea garden steward handed over his hand.

"Okay..." Zhu Xiuyuan nodded and did not dwell too much on the matter. "Since you are their benefactor, go and negotiate with them and take us to see Yan Po."

"Yes, uncle!"

……

Everyone set off again.

On the way, Zhu Xiuyuan asked boredly: "Why are these tea farmers afraid of government officials? If they are afraid, why do they dare to gather a crowd to attack with weapons... What's the secret behind this?"

The rest of the people also pricked up their ears because they were also very curious.

"Second Miss, Uncle, in a big way, let's talk about the tea law and tea policy of my dynasty..."

Through the tea garden steward's narration, everyone gradually understood.

It turns out that these tea farmers are actually a very pitiful group of people.

They were oppressed by the imperial court, exploited by tea merchants, and lived a miserable life.

Specifically, the job of tea farmers is to grow and make tea, but they can’t decide who to sell the tea they make, how much to sell, and how much to pay…

Yamen officials, tea horse censors, etc. often collude with tea merchants to "buy and sell by force" and lower prices. They also tamper with the scales...

In addition to selling tea to tea merchants, tribute also needs to be paid to the court...

Life is very difficult!

There is the most extreme example——

The tea farmers were hungry to pick and make tea. After all the hard work, they ended up owing the court a sum of money...

Later, people like Yan Po emerged and organized nearby tea farmers to keep warm.

The extreme situation of picking and making tea while hungry gradually disappeared.

This also explains why the tea farmers hate the government officials...

In the history that Zhu Xiuyuan is familiar with, tea farmers have been oppressed and exploited for a long time.

This phenomenon has been going on since tea was chosen as a tribute.

Until the Ming Dynasty, the grassroots emperor Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor.

He pitied the tea farmers for their suffering, abolished tea cakes, tea balls, and tea pastes, and replaced them with tributes of loose tea. This situation changed.

(End of this chapter)